Apotheker, whose tenure as SAP CEO ended in February and lasted under a year, will earn an annual incentive of between 200 percent and 500 percent of his annual salary. Stock awards and options, some of which vest over the coming years, amount to $71.8 million at Friday's stock value.

He'll also get a $4 million signing bonus and $4.6 million in moving expenses. Apotheker resides in France and will move closer to HP's headquarters in Palo Alto, California.

"I think there's a sense of Leo has it all to prove as to helming a much larger company than SAP with a very wide product portfolio," said China Martens, an analyst with The 451 Group. In that sense, his compensation package seems large. "Leo's a bit of yesterday's man," she said.

The compensation package, however, shows that HP thinks Apotheker is a valuable choice, she said. The company may hope that he can bring a more international focus and a more software-centric vision to the business, she said.